STARDUST01.11.164:42 AM ETDavid Bowie Takes His Place Among the StarsOne of the most iconic rock ’n’ roll stars in music history has died after an 18-month battle with cancer.LONDON — Even David Bowie couldn’t live forever.

He fooled the world into thinking he was timeless—perhaps even ageless—but Bowie has stunned us one last time.

The lead single “Lazarus” from his final album, which was released last week on his 69th birthday, opened with the words: “Look up here, I’m in heaven.”

He was saying goodbye, but no one believed him. Across half a century of musical invention, he was always one step ahead. Fans would throng to his concerts dressed flamboyantly in celebration of his latest iconic album but the man on stage had already moved on. From David Jones, to David Bowie; Ziggy Stardust to the Thin White Duke; he was a rock ’n’ roll pioneer and a cultural trailblazer.

His unique otherworldly charm also led Bowie to the big screen where he starred in Labyrinth and played The Man Who Fell to Earth.

When news of his death broke early Monday, the universal reaction was incredulity. Surely, the era of David Bowie could not be over, could it?

“Very sorry and sad to say it’s true,” his son, Duncan Jones, wrote on Twitter.

Bowie died peacefully, surrounded by his family, after 18 months battling cancer.

Britain’s prime minister, David Cameron, spoke for a devastated nation. “I grew up listening to and watching the pop genius David Bowie,” he said. “He was a master of reinvention, who kept getting it right. A huge loss.”

Born David Robert Jones on Jan. 8, 1947, in Brixton, south London, Bowie’s influence would stretch around the world. His mother, Peggy, was a waitress and his father, Haywood “John” Jones, worked for a charity.

By the age of 16, young Davy Jones was already playing for a number of bands. He changed his name to Bowie to avoid confusion with Davy Jones, a member of The Monkees, but his first new persona did not catch on with the public until 1969, when “Space Oddity” blasted him to the forefront of the British music scene.

Ground control to Major Tom,

Commencing countdown, engines on.

Once he had entered the stratosphere, there was no looking back for Bowie. Three years later, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars transformed him into one of the world’s preeminent stars.

Just one year later, in 1973, he sent a crowd at London’s Hammersmith Odeon into hysteria by announcing that they were watching his last performance before ending the show with “Rock and Roll Suicide.”

Ziggy Stardust was dead but the Thin White Duke was just getting started. The single “Fame,” co-written with John Lennon, would give him a first No. 1 hit in the U.S. His ever-expanding musical styles—avant-garde, soul, blues, New Romantic, punk—suited the extraordinary breadth of his collaborations from Mick Jagger to Queen and Bing Crosby.

Among those who benefited most from Bowie’s help were Lou Reed and Iggy Pop.

Bowie helped write Lust for Life as Iggy Pop began a solo career after The Stooges. “David’s friendship was the light of my life. I never met such a brilliant person. He was the best there is,” Iggy said.

As one of the great pop-culture icons, his influence spread far beyond the world of music. Bowie’s androgynous image and bisexuality made him a hero to many. “David Bowie’s importance—at least in my life, and probably in the lives of most people—is, in a way, more important than the entire gay-rights movement,” wrote singer-songwriter Stephin Merritt a few years back. “Bowie is about the freedom to have any identity you want, not just gendered. Space alien, crazy person—it’s all tied together, and it’s all sorts of fun.”

He was also twice married to women. Angie Bowie gave birth of the couple’s son, Duncan. Twelve years after their divorce, he married the supermodel Iman, in 1992. They had a daughter, Alexandria Zahra Jones, in 2000.

Bowie was also ahead of his time in his understanding of fashion and business. He even produced financial instruments dubbed “Bowie Bonds,” which allowed him to monetize future royalties.

London Mayor Boris Johnson said: “No one in our age has better deserved to be called a genius.”

Those whom he influenced—virtually every music star born since the 1970s—added their tributes Monday as the news of Bowie’s death echoed around the world. “David Bowie was one of my most important inspirations,” said Kanye West on Twitter. “So fearless, so creative, he gave us magic for a lifetime.”

Pharrell Williams described him as “a true innovator, a true creative.”

As ever, Bowie had the final word. The last haunting refrain from “Lazarus,” which debuted in Bowie’s surreal and brilliant off-Broadway show:Oh, I’ll be freeJust like that bluebirdOh, I’ll be freeAin’t that just like me?

I'm not a huge Bowie fan but I appreciate his influence and talent. I think my favorite quote in response to his death thus far is this:

Actor Simon Pegg wrote on Instagram: "If you're sad today, just remember the world is over 4 billion years old and you somehow managed to exist at the same time as David Bowie."

_________________"Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence." - John Adams

“The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it.” - Neil deGrasse Tyson

January 11th, 2016, 2:18 pm

DJ-B

Pro Bowl Player

Joined: April 5th, 2007, 5:51 pmPosts: 2578

Re: David Bowie Takes His Place Among the Stars

Touchdown Jesus wrote:

I'm not a huge Bowie fan but I appreciate his influence and talent. I think my favorite quote in response to his death thus far is this:

Actor Simon Pegg wrote on Instagram: "If you're sad today, just remember the world is over 4 billion years old and you somehow managed to exist at the same time as David Bowie."

Awesome quote. I agree that i was not huge proponent of all his music, althought some of his songs are some of my favorites. Ironically I most connect with his acting career, as I knew him as my favorite confusing "Villian" Jareth well before I knew anything about his musical Career. I am pretty suire i watched the Labrynth VHS i owned so many times it wore out within 2 years.